Hi, has anyone fished either of these recently? I am in the area towards the end of the week and was thinking of paying one of them a visit. Prices are somewhat similar so its just a matter of picking one! I have fished Dever before (probably ten years ago now) but have never tried Avington. Both fisheries were on the Discovery channel at the weekend and looked good (no matter how staged!?). Anyway any thoughts/opinnions welcome, i think they both offer a similar experience (stalking, big fish etc etc)

Stew

Having only fished both once i may not be the best person to advise you, however my opinion is that Avington is more susceptable to getting into the hotspots, whereas you have a fairly good chance at Dever.

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its not how you tie your flies , its how you tease your flies

Save yourself a few pounds and visit Avon Springs ?

http://www.fishingfly.co.uk/

Last time I visited the local smokery to drop off a fish (Thursday 24 May) another angler was delivering a catch of Dever fish that looked very nice indeed, including a good brown caught on a dry daddy. He did say that the fishery was crowded - in midweek.....

When I fished Avington fairly regularly in the 2002 to 2005 period I used to find that the fish, while certainly impressive, to their detriment were quite fatty when gutted and prepared for the table, or smoked. Rumoured to be a result of them being pushed hard on pellet in the stews.

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"In wine there is wisdom. In beer there is strength. In water there is bacteria." - German proverb
JH based near Southampton

I have fished Dever regularly until recently and I have found that although they have changed their pricing structure it is not as good as when Robbie Winram was in charge.

It is a "prettier" place than Dever but I dont believe it is good value for money any longer.

I have only been to Dever once had a great day but that was a few years ago now althugh I have heard that Dever is going downhill as well.

Those discovery channel programmes are years old and no longer valid in reality.

Ian, re;

...did you mean "I have fished Avington regularly...." ? If you did, I agree 100% with your comments about the fishery not being as good since Robbie and Beverley Winram moved on, and about the prices now being a wee bit fierce.

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"In wine there is wisdom. In beer there is strength. In water there is bacteria." - German proverb
JH based near Southampton

They are both too much money for what they offer, Avon Springs is much better. If you really must go to one of them my choice would be Avington, simply because it's a more mature fishery.

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“There is no more lovely country than Monmouthshire in early spring. Nowhere do the larks sing quite so passionately, as if somehow inspired by the Welsh themselves. There is a blackbird on every thorn and a cock chaffinch, a twink as they call him there, on every bush...... It moved me profoundly. I had been spared to see another spring, and I thank God for it.”

Oliver Kite
“A Spring Day on the Usk”
A Fisherman’s Diary

If the management are the same as they were last year at Avington when I visited. then go to Dever Springs. See previous thread:-

Avington - Revisited 21/11/06

Mind you I visited Avon Springs today and it was delicoius! Pellet pigs you either love or hate them. But they are ok once in a while.

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[COLOR="Blue"]"A fish seen is a fish nearly caught"[/COLOR]